Today we remember the opening of the great Siege of Acre, begun on this day - 28 August - in the year of Our Lord 1189.
Guy of Lusignan, King of Jerusalem, having gathered what strength remained after the disaster at Hattin, moved against the city held by the Sultan Saladin of Egypt and Syria.
What followed was no brief assault, but a long and bitter contest lasting nearly two years, until July 1191.
Acre’s position upon the sea meant that neither side could close the other off completely: th... moreToday we remember the opening of the great Siege of Acre, begun on this day - 28 August - in the year of Our Lord 1189.
Guy of Lusignan, King of Jerusalem, having gathered what strength remained after the disaster at Hattin, moved against the city held by the Sultan Saladin of Egypt and Syria.
What followed was no brief assault, but a long and bitter contest lasting nearly two years, until July 1191.
Acre’s position upon the sea meant that neither side could close the other off completely: the Latin host received men, ships, and stores from the West, while Saladin likewise drew supplies and reinforcements by water.
Thus the city could not be taken at a stroke, nor could it be fully relieved.
The siege became the first significant counterstroke of the Third Crusade.
When at last the city yielded, it was a hard-won victory for the Christian arms and a grave check to Saladin’s design of extinguishing the remaining Crusader states.
We of the Templars were present among those who endured the trenches, the sorties, the sickness, and the long watch upon the walls.
Let this anniversary recall not glory alone, but the cost paid by our brothers who stood fast when the cause of the Holy Sepulchre seemed nearly lost.
